Facebook Badge

I am a part time college English instructor and a shop owner. Located in Cape May County, NJ, we are seasonal, but I am open weekends year round (if the weather permits...aka snow/ice!). You can email me... dutchrose@comcast.net

Custom blog design by:

Sunday, September 6, 2015

Labor Day weekend...and for us here in a tourist area, it is the cherry on the summer sundae. Many of the businesses in a resort are run by individuals or families, and, as we celebrate Labor Day, we rarely think about the "labor" that goes into making the area work. From the young students who work at Uncle Bill's Pancake House to the Boardwalk retailers, rental cleaning crews, and beach life guards, there is plenty of labor going into making people's vacations work.

So, on the Labor Day, I thought it would be appropriate to feature a small local business. Judy Wietsma and her husband are the creative spirits behind A Second Look, a interior design business. Their work is available in Booth 18 at The West End Garage in Cape May, NJ, and Judy also does interior design.

All the furniture in their Booth is hand-painted and
hand-waxed with Annie Sloan Chalk Paint products. According to Judy, the pieces are sanded until the
finish feels like granite and then hand waxed for durability. She painted 50
pieces of vintage furniture for The Carroll Villa Hotel on Jackson Street in
Cape May along with all their fireplaces!

Judy also collects vintage tea pots and coffee pots. Judy's husband is a retired electrician and transforms them into lamps. Each lamp has a polished nickel pull chain...easy on and off...and a decorative and interesting hand painted base. Top it off with a new shade and a creative finial, and you have not only a lamp but also a work of art...you won't find that in a big box shop!

You can see more of Judy's work on her Facebook page at A Second Look Interior Design. Her web page has information about her design theories as well as a gallery of transformed furniture and her work as an interior designer. She has painted display pieces for The Cape May Honey Farm Store in Stone Harbor and Beach Bling, Etc in Cape May.

Judy specializes in staging a home for sale, and she works for several developers and real estate companies in the Cape May, New Jersey area. You can contact her at judy@designbyasecondlook.com or 609-903-0727.

Keep in mind the small business or those who labor in ways we tend to overlook. To quote a famous artist, Leonardo da Vinci: